The first rule: not every return is the same legal problem
“Can I get my money back?” sounds like a yes-or-no question, but it is usually the wrong starting point under Paraguayan consumer law. First identify why you want to reject the product or service. Is it defective? Does it differ from what was advertised? Is it an online transaction you simply want to withdraw from? Or was the contract made away from the seller's premises?
Those situations can overlap, but they rely on different rules. A complaint that says only “I have a right to return this” can miss the relevant deadline or remedy. A useful process therefore classifies the problem first and asks about repair, replacement, price reduction or refund second.
Case 1: the product or service is defective or not what was promised
Law 1334/1998 protects, among other things, clear information and the right to receive the advertised product or service at the promised time, quantity, quality and price. The advertisement and offer are therefore evidence. Save the product page, quotation, receipt, guarantee and messages as they existed when the transaction was made.
For a defect, record the actual symptom, serial number, date discovered and any repair attempts. For a service, compare the contract or quotation with what was delivered. The appropriate remedy depends on the facts. A repairable defect, a wrong model and a service never performed are different problems and do not automatically produce the same legal result.
Case 2: an online delivery differs from the advertisement
E-commerce Law 4868/2013 contains a specific rule. Article 17 requires a refund mechanism where the product or service received does not match the advertisement in time, quantity or quality. The consumer generally must make that claim within no more than five working days after receipt.
Suppose you ordered Model A and received Model B. Preserve the listing, order confirmation and invoice, photograph the item received, and notify the seller in writing with the delivery date. This path is based on non-conformity with the advertised transaction. It is different from a shop voluntarily accepting a change-of-mind return.
Case 3: electronic contract – five-working-day withdrawal
Article 30 of Law 4868 gives consumers a further right to withdraw from an electronic transaction within no more than five working days from receipt of the product or service. A simple electronic notification of the decision to withdraw is sufficient. The right has conditions: the product or service must not have been used or deteriorated, and the consumer can bear return costs or the cost of services already performed.
Article 31 also contains exceptions. They include customised or rapidly perishable goods, opened audio, video or software products, newspapers and magazines, and certain date-specific accommodation, transport, catering and leisure services. Before invoking the withdrawal right, check whether the transaction falls within an exception.
Case 4: an off-premises contract – seven days
Article 26 of the general Consumer Law 1334 addresses a different situation: a contract made outside the seller's establishment, particularly by telephone or at the consumer's home. It gives a seven-day period running from signature or receipt of the product or service. Timely exercise and the condition of what was supplied matter to the refund.
This is not a universal Paraguayan “seven-day return rule” for every ordinary shop purchase. If you buy a non-defective product in a store and simply change your mind, Article 26 does not automatically apply. The store's voluntary exchange policy and any other genuinely applicable consumer rights must be considered instead.
Evidence to preserve immediately
- receipt, order number or payment proof;
- advertisement, product page, service description or quotation;
- guarantee terms;
- delivery and receipt dates;
- photographs or video of a defect or wrong delivery;
- messages with the seller, platform and carrier;
- a short chronology showing date, response and next step.
For an online offer, preserve enough of the page to show price, model, promised characteristics and date. If the listing later changes, contemporaneous evidence is much easier to verify than a memory of what the page used to say.
How to write the first complaint
The message does not need legal jargon. Identify the seller, purchase, receipt date, problem, evidence and requested solution. For example: “On [date] I received order [number]. The item delivered is [actual item], while the order and listing specify [promised feature]. Attached are the order, invoice and photographs. I request [specific remedy] and written confirmation.”
Choose one primary remedy and, where useful, an acceptable alternative. A list of several incompatible demands can make the response less clear. If the seller offers repair, record the handover date, scope of repair and promised return date.
If the seller does not resolve it
SEDECO accepts consumer complaints through its current official channels, including digital complaint intake in 2026. An escalation works best when the authority does not have to reconstruct the story from scattered chats. Provide a short chronology, proof of purchase, advertisement or guarantee, the first complaint, the seller's response and the exact point that remains unresolved.
The most useful distinction therefore comes before counting any deadline: defect/non-performance, online non-conformity, electronic withdrawal or off-premises contract? Once that is clear, repair, replacement, performance, price reduction or refund can be matched to the actual transaction rather than treated as interchangeable rights.